Calendar store's date with destiny
New Year nostalgia
Qian Fang, 45, has lived next to Jin's store for two years and is a regular visitor. She said she is nostalgic about calendars and the New Year tradition.
"When I was a child, replacing the old calendar with a new one was a critical step before New Year's Eve. It was like a ritual signaling that everything would be refreshed from the beginning with the best wishes," Qian said.
At that time, her father's monthly salary was only about 30 yuan, she said. A calendar cost 10 yuan. Still, it was a must-have. Other staples included fireworks, folk paintings, new curtains and dumplings, she said.
"Calendars have many practical functions besides just recording dates," Qian said.
"My father has been living a rather normal life guided by the Chinese lunar calendar.
"His favorite is a page-a-day calendar. One of the first things he would do after getting up is tear out yesterday's page and see what the day's do's and don'ts where on the calendar. It always tells you which day is the best or worst for getting married, sacrifices, and even taking a shower. He treats them as important references for his daily plan."
Qian's daughter also likes calendars, especially those with pictures of peonies, animals or scenery, as she is learning to paint and calendars provide bigger pieces to copy.
Jin considers his goods to be valuable collectors items.
"Quite a few of my customers buy calendars to collect the paintings and old photos," he said. "And those picture designs reflect the changing trend of people's life and thoughts."
For decades, people would hang calendars that reflect their expectations about life. Scenic pictures were popular, and later best-sellers became those with beautiful celebrities, luxury cars and babies. At that time, buyers were mostly young people, according to Jin.
"Nowadays, it's convenient to surf the internet, so celebrities don't need to pose for calendars to get more fans," he said.
"Cars became popular and affordable for nearly every household."
